posted 27. December 200608:12 AM
If I had the picture on my computer, I would show you my parental guilt. My son burned and blistered all ten fingertips when he was learning to walk and put his hands on the hot window of the oven door. I honestly didn't know the glass got so hot on the outside; I simply never touched it and it never occurred to me. Burns on all 10 finger tips and he was still crawling a lot. We brought him home from the emergency room with both hands bandaged in a way that made them look like chicken drumsticks just to prevent him from breaking the blisters and getting an infection. I felt so bad I never told my family what happened but I did take a picture of the bandaging. Funny thing is he has the same big smile in those pictures that Jimmy has.

We have a trampoline, & that is my biggest nightmare. Thankfully, nothing has happened yet, & we've had it for 3 years.

Nothing to have parental guilt. Knock on wood.

--------------------I've got a pen in my pocket does that make me a writer?Standing on the mountain doesn't make me no higher.Putting on gloves don't make you a fighter.And all the study in the world doesn't make it science. -Paul WellerPosts: 199 | From: Kalamazoo, MI | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged |

posted 27. December 200609:00 AM
My sister flipped off of the trampoline and landed on the railroad ties that line our gardern. She broke her collar bone. My family had already instituted the one-at-a-time rule (I know, you can't do popcorn that way), after one of our neighbors (a REALLY fat girl) jumped too hard and broke through our trampoline.

ETA: and my sister has grown up to be a healthy, well-adjusted 29 y.o. who owns two cats. Although she does have a phobia of trampolines without nets.

--------------------If the world were logical, men would ride sidesaddle. -Mama

If it makes you feel any better, on Halloween 2003, my daughter was toddling about while I read a book. I was two feet away. She pulled a bench over and severed the top of her little toe. There was blood everywhere, and we had to call an ambulance. I felt so guilty.

quote:Originally posted by Ryda Wong, EBfCo.: How freakin' bizzare. I had a dream last night in which someone purchased a trampoline.

I've never had a trampoline, nor have I ever dreamed about one before.

Yeah. I just had to add that. Carry on.

Hi, Ryda!

As far as I'm concerned, trampolines are from hell. My son had one but gave it away. Later, he got another one. He gave that one away, too, because there's no longer any room for it with the larger pool. Thank DOYC!

But, please don't feel guilty, edu-macated. Stuff happens, and I'm sure you enforced all of the safety rules. Sometimes, things are simply out of your control, and my son is just lucky that nothing like that happened to one of his sons.

If it makes you feel any better, on Halloween 2003, my daughter was toddling about while I read a book. I was two feet away. She pulled a bench over and severed the top of her little toe. There was blood everywhere, and we had to call an ambulance. I felt so guilty.

It happens to all of us, I think.

Now that you mention it, when I was learning to walk I grabbed a high chair which tipped over and broke my nose. My mom felt really guilty though I never blamed her. Not thrilled with the bump on my nose or my deviated septum, but I don't blame my parents. Stuff happens. **shrug**

posted 27. December 200601:23 PM
And my point is that at what point to we shield our children from danger?

This isn't about whether you feel as if you were deprived or not; it is about whether we are going to raise a generation of people who are afraid of their own shadows. I'm not saying we should give kids presents of boxes of broken glass, but let's not shield them from every possible danger.

quote:Originally posted by AnglsWeHvHrdOnHiRdr: And my point is that at what point to we shield our children from danger?

This isn't about whether you feel as if you were deprived or not; it is about whether we are going to raise a generation of people who are afraid of their own shadows. I'm not saying we should give kids presents of boxes of broken glass, but let's not shield them from every possible danger.

How does keeping kids away from danger make them afraid of their own shadows? I don't see the connection. I'm not talking about keeping kids away from everything that might injure them, I'm talking about trampolines, which are dangerous.

Plenty of kids were taught not to touch a hot stove. Few grow up to be scared of cooking on a range.

--------------------If you say you love ice cream, you better be dreaming of an orgy with Ben, Jerry, and one fine-ass chunky monkey.

quote:Originally posted by AnglsWeHvHrdOnHiRdr: Trampolines are no more dangerous than bikes.

In the case of home trampolines, the American Academy of Pediatrics disagrees with you. From bthyb's link:

quote:Adult supervision will not adequately prevent injuries on home trampolines. Trampolines should be used only in supervised training programs for gymnastics, diving or other competitive sports. A professional trained in trampoline safety always should supervise the use of trampolines.

quote:Originally posted by AnglsWeHvHrdOnHiRdr: Trampolines are no more dangerous than bikes.

In the case of home trampolines, the American Academy of Pediatrics disagrees with you. From bthyb's link:

quote:Adult supervision will not adequately prevent injuries on home trampolines. Trampolines should be used only in supervised training programs for gymnastics, diving or other competitive sports. A professional trained in trampoline safety always should supervise the use of trampolines.

I don't believe they make the same recommendations for bicycles.

Ah...but is the AAP the authority on what is dangerous? Even on their own site, they acknowledge that 4 times as many emergency room visits due to bicycle accidents than [apparently] all trampoline accidents. And how many bike accidents cause injuries of insufficient severity to warrant an ER vist?

I am not saying that using tramps is risk-free. But, they can be used with as much safety as many other things we wouldn't dream of lecturing others to do away with.

posted 27. December 200601:57 PM
But lots more children have bikes than trampolines. There could be four times as many bike injuries, and trampolines could still be many times more dangerous, depending on how many of them there actually are (all the neighborhood kids had bikes growing up--I don't know anyone who had a trampoline).

posted 27. December 200602:19 PM
I understand that, but the statistics are comparing injuries that caused ER visits (bicycles) and total injuries (tramps). Again, considering the number of bike accident-caused injuries that don't result in ER visits, it could be that bicycles are, in fact, more dangerous than tramps. I am not saying they are; I'm just saying that the AAP isn't comparing apples to apples. Just doing my due devil's advocacy.

posted 27. December 200602:26 PM
On futher thought, the AAP may not be comparing trampolines to bicycles at all. They may be evaluating each device based on its relative benefits and risks. Bikes help kids learn balance and coordination, they can be used to maintain fitness, and they're an inexpensive, nonpolluting method of transportation.

posted 27. December 200602:27 PM
If your point was that these statistics are pretty useless, I'm with you. I'm still puzzled, though, as to the source of statistics about trampoline injuries that don't show up in the ER. How does the AAP know if someone twists their ankle or bumps their head unless they need treatment? And are these figures what the AAP (I keep wanting to put an R in!) base their opinion on, or is there more out there about deaths or serious injuries per user, I wonder?

quote:Originally posted by AnglsWeHvHrdOnHiRdr:Also, while I seem to be unable to research it at the moment, I recall there has actually been an increase in emergency room visits per capita since bike helmet laws became widespread.

Is this perhaps because they make it to the emergency room rather than going straight to the morgue?

When you get a chance I'd really like to see your research.

This study suggests that in one town in Florida that passed bike helmet laws "there has been a significant decline in the rates of bicycle related motor vehicle injuries among children in the post-law years compared with the pre-law years."

quote:Originally posted by Mistletoey Chloe: I'm still puzzled, though, as to the source of statistics about trampoline injuries that don't show up in the ER. How does the AAP know if someone twists their ankle or bumps their head unless they need treatment?

[hijack]Part of the problem is that helmets lull cyclists into a false sense of security. Also, that people are not taught 'vehicular cycling' as much as they used to be. We think of the bicycle as a toy or piece of sporting equipment rather than a means of transportation--we will load our bikes on the back of our SUVs and drive somewhere to ride around for a while, then load them back on the SUV and drive home. Most of us don't think of using the bike to go somewhere.

quote:Originally posted by AnglsWeHvHrdOnHiRdr:Also, while I seem to be unable to research it at the moment, I recall there has actually been an increase in emergency room visits per capita since bike helmet laws became widespread.

Is this perhaps because they make it to the emergency room rather than going straight to the morgue?

I'm not sure what you mean; are you saying that a significant number of people are being killed by trampoline accidents?

quote:When you get a chance I'd really like to see your research.

Stupid network here sucks too bad to do serious research, but as soon as I get home, I'll look it up.

quote:This study suggests that in one town in Florida that passed bike helmet laws "there has been a significant decline in the rates of bicycle related motor vehicle injuries among children in the post-law years compared with the pre-law years."

[removed long link]

Similar results in a large Canadian study [removed other long link]

Those are just looking at bike vs. motor vehicle accidents, which is a subset of all bicycle injuries.